Tony Hawk's Proving Ground

THE BAD:
Too many glitches
Seems "unfinished"
Sloppy gameplay at times
Online activity is literally next to nothing.

SUMMARY:
The Hawkman returns for the ninth time and still nothing much has been added into the game. But with the addition of EA's skate which is proving popular, Proving Grounds flaws seem to stand out a lot more.

Like Project 8 and American Wasteland, Neversoft have once again gone for an open world with no loading times (except when you boot the game up). However, this also opens up a lot of glitches which breaks up the play and can frustrate you no end. Which is also why the games feels like it has been rushed and unfinished. You expect more but you get less.

Story mode makes another appearance as per usual with nothing too interesting to mention. It's your standard story mode. lowly skater wanting to make it big. However, now it's been given GTA style missions where you can choose what you do next instead of having to do them in a certain order. This brings a lot more variety to the game. Sadly, it could easily be finished up over a long weekend and then you're stuck doing some of the near impossible SICK goals.

If you're more of an online gamer, then you'll be very disappointed. Proving Ground is certainly not a very popular game with only a handful of people being online at a time. If you're lucky, there will be about three matches being hosted. And that is at peak times.

Offline players may notice that there is no Free roam out of the story unless they play with a friend which is surely a big mistake on Neversoft's part.

However, Proving Ground does provide some nice eye candy. It boasts some midly impressive graphics (though, nothing compared to say Assassins Creed) but its unrealism is its let down. Fans are turning there backs on the same old game to more realistic and challenging games like skate.

Proving Ground is a rushed job. Thrown out there to distract the punters away from skate. However, it doesn't seem to have worked. Hardcore skateboarding fans will be annoyed but Proving Ground provides a nice distraction for those who are looking to turn away from the overflow of FPS. Neversoft now have the opportunity to sit down and re-think there plan of action because if they want to draw back those players a long overdue change is in order. It's going to be a lot of hardwork for the Tony Hawk's series to make up lost ground but one that could produce an outstanding game. Watch this space.